Joel H. Rosenthal is president of Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs. As a nonprofit leader, scholar, and teacher he works to empower ethical action, with a particular focus on U.S. foreign policy, issues of war and peace, human rights, and pluralism. At Carnegie Council, Rosenthal leads a team that identifies critical ethical issues, convenes experts, and produces agenda-setting resources to educate and activate communities globally.
Rosenthal is editor-in-chief of the Ethics & International Affairs journal published by Cambridge University Press. His first book Righteous Realists is an examination of the political realists who shaped post-WWII America in the nuclear age, including Hans Morgenthau, Reinhold Niebuhr, and George Kennan. His current writing and commentary can be found at the President’s Desk.
Rosenthal is the recipient of numerous awards including the Distinguished Scholar Award from the International Studies Association for his lifetime achievement in international studies and an Honorary Degree of Doctor of Social Science from the University of Edinburgh. He received his Ph.D. from Yale University and BA from Harvard University.
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Featured Work
JUL 18, 2009 • Article
Patriotism and Cosmopolitanism
Let me begin with a simple claim. We live today in a globalized world that challenges us morally. While globalization may be a fuzzy concept, ...
JUL 14, 2009 • Podcast
"The Current" Interviews Joel Rosenthal
Carnegie Council president Joel Rosenthal shares his thoughts on the mission and work of the Carnegie Council, the new administration, the future of realism, and ...
JUL 14, 2009 • Transcript
"The Current" Interviews Joel Rosenthal
Carnegie Council president Joel Rosenthal shares his thoughts on the mission and work of the Carnegie Council, the new administration, the future of realism, and ...
JUL 1, 2009 • Podcast
Pillars of Ethics
Carnegie Council president Joel Rosenthal discusses three pillars of ethics--pluralism, rights and responsibilities, and fairness--with Council staff members Madeleine Lynn and William Vocke.
JUN 24, 2009 • Article
Leadership as Practical Ethics
What does one need to know to be a leader in the field of public policy? Joel Rosenthal argues for the centrality of ethics as ...
JUN 3, 2009 • Podcast
Ethical Policy Dilemmas in the Promotion of U.S. Human Rights Values
What are realistic processes of social change that should inform effective human rights policy and its implementation? Should human rights issues be pressed even if ...
APR 14, 2009 • Article
“The Current” Interviews Joel Rosenthal
Transcript of an interview with The Current, Columbia University’s undergraduate journal of contemporary politics, culture, and Jewish affairs. THE CURRENT: What does it mean ...
FEB 9, 2009 • Podcast
The Cuba Wars: Fidel Castro, the United States and the Next Revolution
As Castro finally leaves the stage and a new president arrives in Washington, both the Cuban system and U.S.-Cuba relations could be on ...
JAN 27, 2009 • Podcast
Lessons in Disaster: McGeorge Bundy and the Path to War in Vietnam
For Bundy, the ultimate actor in Vietnam was not the military, the secretary of state or of defense, or the national security advisor. It was ...
JAN 27, 2009 • Podcast
The Crisis of American Foreign Policy: Wilsonianism in the Twenty-First Century
Was George W. Bush the true heir of Woodrow Wilson, the architect of liberal internationalism? Was the Iraq War a result of liberal ideas about ...